Author Archives: hksar gov

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible and repeat it at regular intervals:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department… read more

     The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (July 14) released the latest grading of water quality for 39 gazetted beaches (see Note 1) and one non-gazetted beach (see Note 2).

     Nineteen beaches were rated as Good (Grade 1), 14 as Fair (Grade 2) and seven as Poor (Grade 3).

Grade 1 beaches are:          

Cafeteria Old Beach	Repulse Bay Beach*
Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach*	Shek O Beach*
Chung Hom Kok Beach	Silverstrand Beach*
Discovery Bay	South Bay Beach*
Hap Mun Bay Beach*	St Stephen’s Beach
Hung Shing Yeh Beach*	Tai Po Lung Mei Beach*
Kiu Tsui Beach	Tong Fuk Beach
Kwun Yam Beach	Turtle Cove Beach
Lo So Shing Beach	Upper Cheung Sha Beach
Pui O Beach*

Grade 2 beaches are:

Big Wave Bay Beach*	Golden Beach*
Butterfly Beach*	Kadoorie Beach*
Cafeteria New Beach	Lower Cheung Sha Beach
Castle Peak Beach	Middle Bay Beach
Clear Water Bay First Beach	Silver Mine Bay Beach*
Clear Water Bay Second Beach*	Stanley Main Beach*
Deep Water Bay Beach*	Trio Beach

Grade 3 beaches are:

Anglers’ Beach*	Lido Beach*
Approach Beach	Ma Wan Tung Wan Beach*
Casam Beach*	Ting Kau Beach*
Hoi Mei Wan Beach

     Compared with the grading released last week, Cafeteria Old Beach, Discovery Bay, Pui O Beach, Repulse Bay Beach, Silverstrand Beach and Turtle Cove Beach have been upgraded from Grade 2 to Grade 1.

     Under the present grading system, beaches are classified into four grades, namely Good (Grade 1), Fair (Grade 2), Poor (Grade 3) and Very Poor (Grade 4), according to the level of E. coli in the water. Grades are calculated on the basis of the geometric mean of the E. coli counts on the five most recent sampling occasions.

     While the ratings represent the general water quality at the beaches, an EPD spokesman reminded members of the public that water quality could be temporarily affected during and after periods of heavy rain. Bathers should avoid swimming at beaches for up to three days after a storm or heavy rainfall.

     A summary of beach grades is published weekly before the weekend. The latest beach grades based on the most current data may be obtained from the EPD’s website on Beach Water Quality (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/beach) or the beach hotline, 2511 6666.

Note 1: Lifeguard services are provided by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department at 22 gazetted beaches, marked with an asterisk (*) above, from May 1.

Note 2: The non-gazetted beach is Discovery Bay which has no lifeguard service. read more

Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:      Here is an item of interest to swimmers.      The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced toda… read more

     The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Chris Sun, today (July 14) hosted a seminar with local major chambers and the human resource management sector to review the implementation progress of relevant work in the first year of the current-term Government, and exchange views regarding such work in future.

     Apart from actively nurturing and retaining local talent, the Government proactively trawls for talent to create a strong impetus for Hong Kong’s growth. A series of talent attraction measures announced in the Policy Address last year have been implemented since December 28, 2022. They include introducing the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS) targeting talent with high income and academic qualifications as well as enhancing existing talent admission schemes. The Hong Kong Talent Engage (HKTE) online platform (www.hkengage.gov.hk) was also launched at end-2022 to provide one-stop information and support services for incoming talent.

     The talent-related initiatives have received a positive response since implementation. As of June 30, 2023, the various talent admission schemes received over 100 000 applications in total, and the Immigration Department approved some 61 000. Among them, the TTPS received an overwhelming response. Over 36 000 applications were received and about 26 000 were approved. The positive response affirmed that Hong Kong is an attractive place to live and work for outside talent.

     In addition, the Talent List which reflects the latest shortage of professional and technical talent in different fields was promulgated on May 16, 2023, with the coverage expanded from 13 professions to 51. The List is now applied to the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme, the General Employment Policy and the Admission Scheme for Mainland Talents and Professionals to provide immigration facilitation, with a view to attracting more high-quality talent to meet Hong Kong’s development needs.

     The Government is confident in achieving the target this year, i.e. admitting at least 35 000 outside talents annually with an intended duration of stay of at least 12 months as set out in the Policy Address. The Government will closely monitor the implementation of the enhanced talent admission schemes and make timely adjustments where necessary. At the same time, the Government will work closely with different sectors to make optimal use of different schemes to attract talent with a view to maintaining Hong Kong’s competitiveness.

     Looking forward, the Labour and Welfare Bureau (LWB) is making preparations for setting up the physical office of the HKTE to undertake the frontline work of attracting and supporting talent. On the manpower side, the LWB launched the Special Scheme to Import Care Workers for Residential Care Homes on June 19, 2023. Relevant bureaux will roll out specific labour importation schemes for the construction and transport sectors within this month. The Government is also conducting a new round of manpower projection. Main findings are expected to be ready in the third quarter of 2024, which will be very useful in the Government’s future work in manpower planning.

     Participants of the seminar today included representatives from the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, the Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong, the Federation of Hong Kong Industries, the Hong Kong Chinese Importers’ and Exporters’ Association, the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, the Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management and the HKTE’s collaborators.

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The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Housing Authority:        The Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA) has developed the Project Information Management and Analytics Platform (HA-PIMAP), a cloud-based digital management… read more